ADL Welcomes Passage of House Resolution Condemning Burmese Military for Atrocities Against Rohingya

New York, NY, December 7, 2017 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) yesterday welcomed the House's swift passage of a resolution condemning Burma’s military and security forces for their role in the ongoing ethnic cleansing campaign against the Rohingya in Myanmar. H. Con. Res. 90, which passed the House with nearly unanimous support, also calls on Burma to grant the immediate restoration of humanitarian access to Rakhine State, where these horrific abuses have taken place, and to allow all refugees to voluntarily and safely return.

“The Jewish people know all too well the horrors of ethnic cleansing, and we appreciate the House taking decisive action on this important matter,” ADL CEO and National Director Jonathan Greenblatt said. “We urge the Senate to introduce and pass companion legislation as soon as possible given the dire nature of developments on the ground."

For a number of months, ADL has been urging the Trump administration to impose tough sanctions against the perpetrators of the horrific crimes against the Rohingya, including through an ADL petition to Secretary of State Tillerson last month and an ADL letter to Tillerson in October.

"Over half a million people have already fled this unspeakable violence, and the conscience shudders at the reports of babies burned to death and rape being used as a weapon of war. The U.S. must do more to stop the violence, and we call on the Trump administration to swiftly enact the sanctions laid out by Congress in this bill,” Greenblatt added.

ADL is the world’s leading anti-hate organization. Founded in 1913 in response to an escalating climate of anti-Semitism and bigotry, its timeless mission is to protect the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment for all. Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of hate with the same vigor and passion. A global leader in exposing extremism, delivering anti-bias education, and fighting hate online, ADL is the first call when acts of anti-Semitism occur. ADL’s ultimate goal is a world in which no group or individual suffers from bias, discrimination or hate.